In a gun-loving America, news media must get off the fence

Too many lives are being lost while The Record and other news media hem and haw over the need for more gun control. (Photo credit: Sauk River Review@blogspot.com)

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

What exactly is the point of today's front-page column framing the gun-control debate from the warped perspective of a shooting range owner who enabled two suicides?

The Record's Mike Kelly is supposed to be an opinion columnist, but you won't find a single opinion on the slaughter caused by easy accessibility to guns, including military style assault weapons.

Kelly claims the owner of Gun for Hire shooting range finds "himself straddling two powerful currents in the fractious debate over firearms" (A-1).

But the veteran columnist, the newspaper he works for and other news media have themselves sat on the fence for far too long as the blood of innocent Americans runs in the street.

Readers no longer have the time or temperament for Kelly's tedious assemblage of quotes from both sides of the carnage in what amounts to little more than another he said/she said account.

Hillary Clinton

Much of the front page today is devoted to Democrat Hillary Clinton, who is the first woman to lead a major party ticket in a presidential election (A-1).

And the state Supreme Court said another woman, who lost her child in a custody battle, has a right to an attorney, even if she cannot afford one (A-1).

Meanwhile, an email circulating among Democrats contrasts the convention in Philadelphia to the Republicans' attempt to divide and conquer in Cleveland:

"The RNC convention was a hate-fest. The DNC is running an inclusive convention; one that has the most progressive platform ever thanx to Bernie Sanders. As a Jew, I could not be prouder of Bernie. I never thought I would see what he achieved in my lifetime. 

"I have never looked at my life as if it is about me. We live in a country in which we are a part and should contribute. I feel I have a responsibility to bear that in mind, which is why I often go out of my way to give a hand up and pay it forward. I believe a rising tide raises all boats. 

"As long as anyone can buy a gun anywhere and anyhow they choose, this fight isn't over. As long as people are not treated equally, this fight isn't over. As long as obstructionist Republicans control the House and Senate, this fight isn't over. (There are many more reasons why this fight isn't over, but I will stop here.)

"Yes, I am passionate about this. Enough is enough with the failures in DC. This is a moment in time when real change is possible. I hope we do not let it slip by. 

"Yesterday, Bernie Sanders spoke to his supporters about unifying behind Hillary and was booed by many. Bernie told them that if Trump wins, those that are booing will have to be the ones to tell that to their children. I pray I never have to have that conversation."

Governor Christie

In a letter to the editor today, Steve Becker of Wayne refers to the possibility Governor Christie could become the next U.S. attorney general.

Becker says "anyone who thinks that our beloved governor had no knowledge of [the George Washington Bridge lane closures] is more than welcome to make an offer on a bridge over the Hudson River" (A-12).